> If you’re looking to build a unicorn, and not a lifestyle business, 4 years is enough time to get a feeling for whether you’ll succeed or not. I hate this fa

> If you’re looking to build a unicorn, and not a lifestyle business, 4 years is enough time to get a feeling for whether you’ll succeed or not. I hate this false dichotomy and to me it represents some kind of counter-reality thinking that would be poisonous in 99% of the businesses on earth. If I start a business, generate revenues of $50K in the first year, $250K in the second, and by year 8 I'm at $10M annually but the growth has flattened out, is that a "lifestyle" business? No it's a shit ton of work, a huge achievement and as the founder it has probably made me quite rich, but also that doesn't look like a unicorn trajectory that some VC is looking for so that he can line his own pockets. As a founder, unless you're very deep into a very successful career, you lean into that business for the big win it is. In this guy's view of the world it apparently doesn't even exist and yet it describes a huge chunk of "main street" businesses and in a lot of cases these businesses can be more profitable for you as the founder than whatever scheme a VC is cooking up.